Finding the just-right paint color can be such an arduous process. Margie struggled for a solid year to find the perfect pink paint (or would she go for wallpaper??) for her original Mamie pink bathroom. Would she ever find it? (Hint: In the end, she took matters into her own hands.)
I’ve actually been in contact with Margie for the better part of a year, as she continued a tenacious quest to find just-the-right wall treatment for her vintage pink half bathroom.
After considering everything from vintage wallpaper to several different colors of paint, Margie found inspiration from Jane’s pink and green bathroom. Margie liked the idea of Jane’s ‘Apricot Fluff’ walls… but she had found another pink she also liked. So, she combined the two ideas….
Margie documented her saga for us — we suspect this is similar to what many of us do on the path to finding “perfect” wall treatments:
Hi Kate and Pam,
Just over a year ago, I told you about a paint color that almost exactly matches my 1957/58 pink half bath tile. It’s PPG Porter Paints’ “Sonia Rose.” I looked through a LOT of pinks to find it!
I used it to paint a metal shelf (above) in my bathroom but felt the paint color was too intense to use on the walls in such a small (4’3″ x 4’3″) room. I looked into wallpaper since I know the kitchen, full bath, and this half bath had been papered originally, and I’d even found a sliver of a tropical green and pink paper that I suspect might be original to the half bath. But I wasn’t happy with any paper I saw, either vintage or new.
Then I tried a grey paint for a while, and that wasn’t working, either. I removed the original interior window shutters to have them stripped and when I did that, the trim paint was ruined, so I needed to strip and repaint the trim. I tested for lead (none) and stripped the window frame and sill completely. When I started looking closer at all the trim and door paint, it was so lackluster and even seemed to be a sort of grey-white. I cleaned it and cleaned it and it never got whiter, so now I’ve repainted all the trim in the room and will (eventually) do a lot of trim repainting throughout the house. I had my original red oak floors refinished (Early American stain–it looks fabulous) in November, new shoe molding went down, and I have to touch up all the baseboards in the house, so this is a long-term job.
After seeing and loving Jane’s pink and green bathroom, I was inspired and thought maybe “Apricot Fluff” would work in my room, but it’s just a little too peachy for my pink tile.
So I decided to buckle down and mix up my own shade, which turned out to be about 25 parts white to 1 part Sonia Rose. I am so happy with it and wanted to show it off to you.
The bathroom still has its original floor tile, a dapple-finish hex tile.
Thought you’d also like to know that the medicine cabinet is the original Miami-Carey, and the light switch glows when turned off. They installed the switch box too low, so I’ve had to cut the plate to make it fit above the tile. The only plug in the room is on the light fixture. If I did anything to remodel the room, it would be to move the switch box up and enlarge it to fit a switch+plug set.
The vintage lamp on the tank lid has a pink glass cup, perfect for storing cotton balls. I got the original lingerie sketches from a seller at Atlanta’s Scott Antique Market a couple of years ago. And I just installed a new, old-style light fixture to replace the single-bulb light that was in there. One day, I’ll find a more decorative shade for it on eBay.
I made the valence to match the vanity curtain, but when I held up the fabric to look at making a matching window curtain, the room just looked like an old-tyme soda shoppe. So I got some whiter fabric that looks nicer with the whiter-white trim paint and made a new curtain. It’s clearly easy to overdo such a small space, which is why I was concerned about pink wall paint when this all started, and why I wasn’t happy with most wallpapers.
Margie, your pink bathroom looks fantastic — we love the pinks together, along with simple elegance of the pink paired with black and white decor — classique. In a small space like our bathrooms, sometimes the best bet is to use colors that have high Light Reflective Values (LRVs) to bounce light around the room and make it feel lighter, brighter and more spacious. Also, you know what Pam says about pink: It’s Retro Botox — it takes 10 years off, what with the rosy glow — great place to take portrait shots!
Thanks for sharing your fun paint-journey story!
Margie C. says
Update: Benjamin Moore has a couple of pink/peach-ish colors that are very close to the color I ended up with by mixing. “Sun Washed” 2169-70, and “Soft White” 2170-70.
linoleummy says
Everything, Margie, from the tone on tone walls & floor to the valance & curtains to the tiny black accents is just deliciously perfect.
Joe Felice says
The pink walls coordinate perfectly, but, honestly, I liked the gray better. Too much tone-on-tone for me. Maybe a row of black bullnose would have helped. But it turned out well and the way she wanted, and that is the important thing.
Pink, and its derivatives from red to orange, is a tough color to get just right. It is precisely the red in it that makes this so. And then the tone changes slightly depending on the light, the surrounding coordinates, the surface, and the sheen. It, indeed, can be very tough getting just that right shade. I think maybe that’s why people (back then and today) just say “Forget it,” and go with wallpaper.
pam kueber says
Kate went for the tone-on-tone look, too https://retrorenovation.com/tag/master-bathroom-design-ideas-from-kate/
Mandy says
I’m a Realtor in suburban Detroit. We have some ab fab old homes. Mine was built in ’36. I often come across pink bathrooms. More often than I like, potential buyers say “Ugh, that would have to go.” THAT is when I hold forth and extol the virtues of this web site. I’m on a mission to save as many pink bathrooms as I can. One of my clients found ‘save the pink bathrooms” on this site a few years ago and sent it to me. HE was ready to gut his, until he found that site. Now, he proudly brags about bring his pink back to life. Happy Days!
pam kueber says
Oh my gosh, you ust made my day! THANK YOU!
Dana says
It’s a beautiful room! Keep on keeping on the pink!
Carol says
When looking for paint colors, ask to see the Architectural Book – it has every shade in between all the colors on the paint chips. All paint counters used to have one, but now these books are usually only found at stand alone company paint stores.
This may make your search a bit easier and less time consuming!